Winnipeg shopping

[spiritedenergy]

I did my part shopping in downtown today... more than 500$ in eyeglasses at the Bay Optical... they are so good at make you buy the most expensive things

Today downtown was beautiful, so windy and bright... I noticed the bums concentrate north of Portage now (Portage Place being their center of action) while south of Portage it's becoming more civilized. Too bad the Exchange is north of Portage...

[spiritedenergy]

today i shopped at Staples in Portage Place, tomorrow i will check the bay (i saw a nice jacket and nice shoes that need to be mine ). I really like to shop in the bay/portage place, i think they complement each other nicely. At first i was scared by the darkness and rundown look of the bay and the bums in portage place, but now i feel more comfortable there, for sure more than in the suburban malls where i really feel like a fish out of the water and get a headache after few minutes inside.

The grocery at the bay is not very good, it's kinda like safeway, not many things to choose from, but they said they can carry the grocery home for 10 dollars and free if the amount is > 100$. It looks mostly used by seniors though, it's a bit depressing.

[1ajs]

Originally Posted by spiritedenergy

today i shopped at Staples in Portage Place, tomorrow i will check the bay (i saw a nice jacket and nice shoes that need to be mine ). I really like to shop in the bay/portage place, i think they complement each other nicely. At first i was scared by the darkness and rundown look of the bay and the bums in portage place, but now i feel more comfortable there, for sure more than in the suburban malls where i really feel like a fish out of the water and get a headache after few minutes inside.

The grocery at the bay is not very good, it's kinda like safeway, not many things to choose from, but they said they can carry the grocery home for 10 dollars and free if the amount is > 100$. It looks mostly used by seniors though, it's a bit depressing.

yea the bay is a bit depressing but having it and the grochery store downstairs are vital asets to our downtown but would be nice if they would put some money into the basement

[Boreal]

For what it's worth, the new owners of HBC have/had ambitious plans, that likely would have very positively affected the downtown Winnipeg HSC. Unfortunately, the recession derailed all of that, but hopefully when things do turn around, all those previous plans will be back on the drawing board.

[1ajs]

like what?

[Boreal]

In summer 2008, after Jerry Zucker's passing, the HBC was acquired by NRDC equity partners, which just happen to be the parent firm of Lord & Taylor. Long story short, the new executives are very aggressive, and wanted to extend the offerings of the HBC, by introducing new appendages. Case in point, The Bay is a middle-of-the-road retailer, whereas Holt Renfrew (which I guess doesn't apply to Winnipeg anymore, outside of cosmetics) is an upper end retailer, and the new executives want/wanted to capitalize on the market gap between The Bay and Holt Renfrew by introducing 10 or more Lord & Taylor outlets into Canada (that was part of the acquisition bid, from what I recall). It was speculated if not stated outright that these Lord & Taylor outlets, along with some jewellery outlets (Fortunoff I believe is the name) would be tied in largely to the HBC's existing department stores across the country. Of course, assuming that they will target Winnipeg's HBC is pure speculation on my part, but I'd like to think it's a possibility.

[spiritedenergy]

Originally Posted by rgalston

Yeah totally. I originally misread your post and thought you wrote "Bloomingdales". Not bad, but I prefer Nordstrom's clearance on the third floor of the mall... found a pair of classic Sperry Top-siders for $29.00 last weekend.

Where do they sell Sperry Top-Sider in Winnipeg apart from The Bay? They don't have my size

[SpongeG]

loves nordstrom rack - got some Keen shoes last weekend

when does the Apple store and H&M open in winnipeg?

[Boreal]

Apple for sure this fall at Polo Park. H&M is hotly rumoured to be interested in part of the space left vacant by Safeway at Polo Park. If the rumour holds true then you should see movement in the near future. Of course, there is the whole 'Lifestyle Centre' which is more or less an open air addition to Polo Park (and one I sorely, sorely wish is all just a bad dream - this is a cold climate, this isn't B.C. or Virginia) then that could potentially have an effect on when some international retailers show up. Movement has been slow on said 'lifestyle centre', but the developers claim that they are in negotiation with a number of national and international tenants as we speak.

[1ajs]

polo origonaly was an open air mall like that though then they made it into a roofed in mall then it got added to then a loor was added and so on

[SpongeG]

neat

[Kris22]

Originally Posted by Boreal

Apple for sure this fall at Polo Park. H&M is hotly rumoured to be interested in part of the space left vacant by Safeway at Polo Park. If the rumour holds true then you should see movement in the near future. Of course, there is the whole 'Lifestyle Centre' which is more or less an open air addition to Polo Park (and one I sorely, sorely wish is all just a bad dream - this is a cold climate, this isn't B.C. or Virginia) then that could potentially have an effect on when some international retailers show up. Movement has been slow on said 'lifestyle centre', but the developers claim that they are in negotiation with a number of national and international tenants as we speak.

After just recently being at an H&M, I really do think they would do well in Winnipeg. They have that trendy and simple vibe, kinda like American Apparel but with a thousand variations of boring looks. It would be great at polo park.

[rgalston]

I, too, have heard that H&M will be coming to Polo Park soon. That's great, since they have nice things once in a while, and at good prices. Anything to get Winnipeggers dressed better is good by me.

[Jeff]

my dream: a two-storey store fronting portage in portage place.. one can dream right?

[wags_in_the_peg]

Originally Posted by 1ajs

polo origonaly was an open air mall like that though then they made it into a roofed in mall then it got added to then a loor was added and so on

polo park was originally a horse race track before all that

[h0twired]

Originally Posted by rgalston

I, too, have heard that H&M will be coming to Polo Park soon. That's great, since they have nice things once in a while, and at good prices. Anything to get Winnipeggers dressed better is good by me.

Hardly.

H&M isn't far from Le Chateau in terms of style and quality.

[Rudiger]

Originally Posted by h0twired

Hardly.

H&M isn't far from Le Chateau in terms of style and quality.

Quality yes, but not always on style. The main difference between the two is perception. More people (both men and women) will shop at H&M than they will at Le Chateau.

[SpongeG]

H&M is very popular amongst Fashionistas and they have great kids clothes - parents love it - and its really cheap

its fast fashion - not really investment wardrobe stuff but one off wear it while its trendy

plus they pump in some cool european music in their stores

[rgalston]

Originally Posted by h0twired

Hardly.

H&M isn't far from Le Chateau in terms of style and quality.

How can that be--H&M carries clothing in colors other than black, red and leopard print.

[hexrae]

Originally Posted by rgalston

How can that be--H&M carries clothing in colors other than black, red and leopard print.

idk, the leopard print trucker cap is pretty sharp